XVI New British Film Festival

City:
Moscow

Cinemas:
Documentary Film Center
Formula Kino Horizont
Formula Kino Praga

Dates:
28 October – 28 November 2015

Partners:
British Council
CoolConnections


Choose city for details:


Военная книга
War Book

Country: Great Britain
Year: 2014
Director: Tom Harper
Cast: Ben Chaplin, Phoebe Fox, Sophie Okonedo, Shaun Evans, Kerry Fox
Genre: drama
Language: English
Translation: russian subtitles
Time: 1 hour 32 minutes
Возраст: 16+

Since the 1960s, British civil servants have met to play out war-game scenarios, their discussions helping them to formulate government procedure in the event of nuclear attack. Now, in 2014, eight officials — plus the unexpected bonus of the defence secretary — meet briefly over three successive days, exploring unappealing scenarios that would be triggered by a Pakistani group detonating a nuclear bomb in Mumbai, India.

Reasonably fearing that audiences won’t want to watch such lengthy discussions, screenwriter Jack Thorne maintains an unflagging pace by ensuring that all the participants are monumentally busy with their regular workloads. Each day’s convocation plays out in real time, in less than 30 minutes, raising the question of whether these officials would choose to burden their calendars with three separate meetings of such brevity. This tactic undoubtedly improves the film’s rhythm, as decisions in multiple policy areas are taken with extreme rapidity by a show of hands.

As once upon a time Sidney Lumet’s Twelve Angry Men, all the characters in War Book are quite different. Young aide Tom emerges as the most impassioned dove; hawkish alpha male Gary delights in macho provocation. Senior civil servant Philippa is a calming presence as the meeting’s chair, while no-nonsense Maria provides a more maturely persuasive voice for tough action. A sleazy private flirtation between Gary and junior aide Kate, dropped in as a curtain raiser on day three, offers welcome punctuation and introduces fresh information, hinting that the ongoing discussions might soon have an urgent relevance.

Theatricality looms, but the variation of voices and viewpoints among the expert cast generates a rat-a-tat momentum. Harper’s framing is always dynamic, and often pointed: each glimpse of life passing blithely by this room’s only window provides a sobering reminder of the extent to which we’re at the mercy of those who would govern us.

 

Images

Schedule:

Moscow: Formula Kino Horizont

4 November, Wednesday

17:00 War Book // Q&A: Shaun Evans